Three Kingdoms Mythology World.

"They are all relatives of Sun Jian and the families of his generals, and have been properly detained," a messenger reported to Cai Mao, kneeling on one knee.

Cai Mao's lips curled into a cold smile, a ruthless glint flashing in his eyes: "Very well! Sun Jian, do you think you can rest easy just because you escaped Luoyang? The Imperial Seal of the State is in your hands, which is a crime! Today, I will first capture your family members and then use them to exchange for the Imperial Seal of the State! That way, you can avoid being killed, and you should thank me."

"Bring Sun Jian's second son, Sun Quan, here." After a pause, Cai Mao seemed to remember something and gave the order.

"promise!"

Soon, a child who was about ten years old was brought over.

However, when Cai Mao saw the child, his expression changed drastically, and he looked at the messenger and said, "You're saying he's Sun Quan?!"

“Isn’t that right? This… we were all acting according to that map, and this man was captured in Sun Quan’s room!” The messenger understood Cai Mao’s questioning tone and immediately responded.

"Good! Good! Good! As expected of someone who is rough around the edges but meticulous at heart, a fierce tiger from Jiangdong who can also appreciate the beauty of a rose!" Cai Mao snorted coldly.

At this moment, he realized that Sun Jian must have secretly evacuated all his family members and replaced them with substitutes to deceive the prefect's mansion.

“Take them away…” Cai Mao waved his hand and said.

The messenger breathed a sigh of relief. This man seemed to be in a good mood today. In the past, if he had made such a mistake, well... his life would have been in danger!

"General, everything is ready." At this moment, a tall, handsome military officer walked over with a long spear and reported.

"General Wenping, when the battle begins, you will lead your troops as the vanguard," Cai Mao ordered meaningfully.

“Yes, sir!” Wen Ping replied.

Wen Ping was one of Liu Biao's generals.

Looking at Cai Mao, Wen Ping wanted to speak and offer some advice, but the words caught in his throat because Cai Mao looked down on them, the military generals recruited after Liu Biao seized power in Jingzhou.

Cai Mao ignored some of the previous suggestions and instead blamed the people who made them.

In fact, there is a way to make the capture of Changsha faster and smoother: to take advantage of and unite with the remaining clan forces within Changsha Prefecture.

After Sun Jian became the governor of Changsha, he began to wield power forcefully. All the rebellious clan forces were purged and suppressed, and only then did they obediently go into hiding.

Now that we have dismantled Sun Jian’s power, we can use him to dismantle the cities of Changsha from within, achieving twice the result with half the effort!
However, Cai Mao did not apply this simple principle; instead, he wanted to solve the problem directly through a forceful frontal siege...

Was Cai Mao stupid? Of course not. Would the head of the Cai family not have thought of this method? It's just that he was unwilling or simply didn't want to use it... That's why he hesitated to speak.

"It seems that Cai Mao wants to demonstrate his strength and solidify his position with solid military achievements, and also show Liu Biao his importance..." Wen Ping thought to himself.

Thinking this through, Wen Ping said nothing more and turned to leave. As for being the vanguard general, it was dangerous, but he was not afraid.

He's not only a strategist, but also incredibly strong; he's already broken through to the level of a First-Rank Divine General!

He might be afraid at the Heavenly Rank Martial General stage, but after advancing to the Divine General stage, his strength will greatly increase, and he is confident that he can knock on the gates of Yiyang City!

Cai Mao watched Wen Ping's departing figure, his brow furrowing. He had witnessed the man's strategy and bravery firsthand. Unfortunately, Wen Ping had always refused to cultivate a close relationship with the Cai family. He had even offered him a daughter from a collateral branch of the family in marriage, but Wen Ping had declined.

Without further thought, Cai Mao reined in his horse and charged forward, his spear pointing towards the walls of Yiyang. His voice boomed like a bell: "Listen up, Yiyang City garrison commander! Sun Jian, the Prefect of Changsha, has rebelled and hoarded state treasures, and the whole world has come to punish him! If you know what's good for you, surrender the city immediately and hand over the city, and the lives of your garrison and the people will be spared! Otherwise, when my army breaches the city, I will make sure you are wiped out!"

On the city wall stood the commander of Yiyang, a middle-aged, burly military man. If Lin Mu were here, he would surely recognize him—it was none other than Ling Cao!
Ling Cao's face was grave as he gazed at the dark mass of enemy troops outside the city and the large "Cai" banner fluttering in the wind. His heart sank to the bottom. He knew that Cai Mao had come prepared this time, and his forces far outnumbered the city's defenders.

"You scoundrel Cai Mao, how dare you spout such nonsense!" Ling Cao roared. "My lord is loyal to the emperor and loves his country, how dare you slander him! The matter of the national treasure is pure fabrication! You came to attack my Changsha on the orders of a traitor like Dong Zhuo, which is an act of treason! I, Ling Cao, will live and die with Yiyang today, and I will make sure you never return!"

"You won't listen to reason, so you'll have to suffer the consequences!" Cai Mao's face darkened. "Since you're so stubborn, don't blame me for being ruthless! Issue the order: the entire army, listen up, attack the city!"

"kill!!!!!"

At Cai Mao's command, war drums thundered and battle cries shook the heavens in the Jingzhou army. Countless archers lined up and unleashed their arrows. Arrows rained down on the city walls. Meanwhile, catapults were launched and began to unleash their power, sending massive stones hurtling against the walls with deafening roars.

"Kill!!!" At this moment, a vanguard force rushed out of formation, like a sharp knife heading straight for the city wall of Yiyang.

The one in the lead was Wen Ping.

Upon seeing Wen Ping, Ling Cao's expression changed slightly: "Zhongye!"

He didn't expect to see Wenping here.

During the previous Qu Xing Rebellion, Lord Sun Jian led his troops to quell the rebellion and encountered Wen Ping, who was a local militiaman.

At that time, Lord Sun Jian had the idea of ​​recruiting him and made the proposal, but unfortunately Wen Ping did not agree.

But now, he's actually submitted to Liu Biao's command...

He had sparred with Wen Ping, and the two were evenly matched. But Wen Ping had given him a handicap.

Now, Wen Ping has completely broken through to become a Life Essence Divine General, making him even less of a match for him. This is because his breakthrough is not yet complete, his Divine Realm is still in its infancy, and his Primordial Spirit is still condensing. He can only be considered a half-baked Divine General.

Despite his concerns, Ling Cao remained calm and composed, ordering his soldiers to fight back fiercely. Rolling stones and logs rained down from the city walls, while arrows were fired in rapid succession, relentlessly suppressing the Jingzhou army.

Following the vanguard, a shield bearer watched the giant shield as the infantrymen followed.

"Fire! Ballistae, fire on the vanguard!" Ling Cao commanded.

"Whoosh!" A barrage of crossbow bolts shot towards the vanguard. Although Wen Ping was at the front, he was only one person and could not withstand all the crossbow bolts and arrows.

In an instant, blood and flesh flew everywhere beneath the walls of Yiyang City. Shouts of battle, screams of agony, and the clanging of weapons clashed together, creating an exceptionally tragic scene.

However, despite thorough preparations and overwhelming military strength, Yiyang City was ultimately captured. Moreover, it was breached during the very first wave of attacks.

After capturing Yiyang, Cai Mao rested briefly before leading his army relentlessly towards Linxiang, the capital of Changsha Commandery. He knew time was of the essence; he had to capture the entire Changsha Commandery before Sun Jian returned. Meanwhile, Sun Jing anxiously awaited news in Linxiang. When news of Yiyang's fall arrived, he nearly collapsed, his vision blurred.

"It's over... Yiyang has fallen, Linxiang is in grave danger!" Sun Jing muttered to himself, his face filled with despair. He knew that the small number of troops defending Linxiang were no match for Cai Mao's army. He could only call upon the garrisons of other cities to come to its aid.

……

While Changsha Commandery was engulfed in war, and Sun Jian was heading south with the Imperial Seal of the State, Lin Mu's side also began its operations.

After Liu Dai led his troops out of the city and returned to a temporary camp outside the city, he made some preparations and then began to move out.

Since there was no need to guard the supplies, and no supplies were guarding them, Liu Dai launched a full-scale attack that night and surrounded Qiao Mao's temporary camp.

Just as Liu Dai was taking action, in the darkness further away, two light cavalry units that had been poised to attack also began to move.

One branch was led by Yue Jin, and the other by Huang Zhong!
Following Liu Dai's actions, they also began their own. The Thunder Legion charged towards the temporary camp of Kong Zhou, the governor of Yu Province, while the Nine Suns Legion charged towards Kong Rong's temporary camp.

In the darkness, a force of three thousand men dressed in black secretly infiltrated Kong Rong's camp...

These men in black were the elite of Lin Mu's Night Shadow Legion, each possessing unique skills and adept at stealth and assassination. They had infiltrated Kong Rong's camp several days earlier, disguising themselves as cooks, grooms, or even, with some using their exquisite disguises, blending into the personal guard.

At this moment, they were moving stealthily throughout the camp according to the pre-arranged plan. Some sneaked to the granaries, wrapped strips of cloth soaked in kerosene around arrows, and waited for the signal to set them on fire; others lay in ambush near the general's tent, their eyes fixed on the tent like hawks, waiting for the right moment to seize the central army camp; still others quietly made their way to the tents throughout the camp, silently eliminating the patrolling sentries with specially made blowguns, clearing the way for the subsequent surprise attack by the main army.

In other words, Kong Rong's temporary camp was already riddled with holes... Even with Wu Anguo guarding it, he could not withstand the invasion of the Night Shadow Tribe.

Inside Kong Rong's camp, most of the soldiers were already asleep, with only a few sentries dozing off at the edge of the camp. They were completely unaware that the shadow of death had quietly descended upon them.

Meanwhile, Liu Dai's army had already surrounded Qiao Mao's camp.

Afterwards, Liu Dai directly stepped forward to question Qiao Mao's garrison commander, using morality and other means to coerce the commander.

"You, as soldiers under the governor of Dongjun, do not think of supporting the Han Dynasty, but instead betray your allies, causing our army to lose all its food supplies. Are you plotting a rebellion and joining forces with Dong Zhuo?" Liu Dai's angry shouts echoed throughout the camp.

Because of his prior guilt, Qiao Mao's garrison commander was not forceful and repeatedly apologized to Liu Dai.

With a large army pressing in, he didn't want to actually start a conflict, otherwise it would be difficult to resolve the situation.

"Our army is currently facing a severe shortage of food supplies. I have already spoken with Prefect Qiao Mao and asked him to lend me half of the food supplies. You can open the camp gates and let my porters in to transport the supplies!" Liu Dai bluntly stated his purpose.

“Lord Liu, the matter from before has not yet been investigated, and without the lord’s approval, this humble general dares not act on his own. My lord is already on his way here, could we wait a little longer? If Lord Liu is short of food during this time, how about I personally transport some over?” Qiao Mao’s deputy general was quite well-mannered and somewhat shrewd.

But Liu Dai wanted more than just that little bit of food; he wanted much more, even... Qiao Mao's luck!

"Hmph! Was the attack on our army orchestrated by you? So, you've been obstructing me time and time again because you wanted to destroy our army!! You must have been instructed by Qiao Mao to defect to Dong Zhuo and wipe out the Guandong rebels!" Liu Dai immediately seized the initiative and pinned the blame on Qi.

The garrison commander was a confidant of Qiao Mao. Upon hearing this, his expression changed, but he still forced a smile and replied, "Liu Dai, you scoundrel, stop spouting nonsense! My lord is utterly loyal; how could he possibly intend to rebel? It is you who, without cause, has launched an invasion of our borders. What is the meaning of this?"

By this time, he had already realized that Liu Dai's unreasonable behavior was not for a simple purpose.

“Reason?!” Liu Dai sneered: “The theft of national treasures from the palace is known throughout the land to be the work of Sun Jian, and before leaving the capital, Sun Jian had been in close contact with Qiao Mao! How can Qiao Mao escape suspicion? I am here today on the orders of our leader Yuan Shao to bring him to justice!”

Good heavens, Liu Dai has attributed his actions to Yuan Shao.

These words, though half-truths, were enough to sway people's hearts. Some soldiers in the camp, unaware of the truth, couldn't help but show fear upon hearing that it was related to such a momentous matter as national treasures.

The garrison commander's heart tightened, knowing that it was not the right time to argue. He could only force himself to remain calm: "Nonsense! My lord is not in the camp. You all must stop your noise! ​​If you do not retreat, do not blame me for my arrows never missing their mark!"

"If you won't listen to reason, you'll have to suffer the consequences!" Seeing that persuasion was ineffective, a ruthless glint flashed in Liu Dai's eyes: "Since you are so stubborn, don't blame me, Liu Dai, for being merciless! Pass down the order: beat the drums! Attack the camp!"

When the garrison commander saw that Liu Dai was really going to use force, his expression changed drastically.

"Boom! ~~~~~~" The sound of drums rang out.

"Woo woo woo!~~~~" The horn of attack sounded.

The sound of war drums and horns suddenly shattered the tranquility of the night. Liu Dai's army surged towards Qiao Mao's camp like a tidal wave. In an instant, shouts of battle, the clash of weapons, and the whistling of arrows mingled together, creating a cacophony of noise.

Although the general defending Qiao Mao's camp put up a fierce resistance, Liu Dai's army was well-prepared and outnumbered. Especially under Liu Dai's personal supervision, their morale was high, and their offensives came one after another.

Just as the fierce battle raged at Qiao Mao's camp, a series of tremors came from afar.

As night fell, Qiao Mao, Kong Rong, and Kong Zhou finally returned with the main force.

Sensing the commotion, Liu Dai gave his deputy a wink, then disappeared into the crowd.

Qiao Mao, Kong Rong, and Kong Zhou led the main force in three separate groups back to their respective camp areas.

Kong Rong and Kong Zhou also saw Liu Dai attacking the camp, but they did not immediately try to mediate. Instead, they planned to return to the camp, gather all available troops, and then try to mediate.

However, when the two returned to camp and began to muster their troops, a vast, heaven-and-earth voice resounded in their ears:

"--Ding!"

"—Announcement from the Huaxia Region: Many ambitious people in Chang'an, despite their cunning and schemes, cannot compare to you. Qiao Mao, the eleventh governor of Dongjun and the 'Ranking of the Lords of Heaven and Earth,' has perished and fallen off the list! The 'Ranking of the Lords of Heaven and Earth' has changed."

"..."

"..."

(I'm busy tonight, so only one update!) (End of Chapter)